JRPG Journey 2024: Super Mario RPG for Nintendo Switch (June)

Spring bonus game: Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim

July’s game: Record of Radia War

I’m finally caught up on my retrospectives for JRPG Journey 2024. Hope you enjoy June’s entry; it’s a doozy!

This’ll be one of my shorter retrospectives or what I used to call an RPG Quickie on my YouTube channel, for I don’t have much to say about the Super Mario RPG remake. That’s because the game doesn’t have much to offer. The original SNES version is the first RPG I ever played, and while I thoroughly enjoyed this 15-hour romp as a kid, my cherished memory and lofty expectations were tarnished let down by this Switch update.

And I’ll start there — this is a budget remake, but unlike many of Nintendo’s more cheaply produced titles, like Captain Toad, Link’s Awakening, or Yoshi’s Crafted World, Super Mario RPG feels like a budget game. It’s.. hard to put my finger on; the characters look plasticky or toy-like in a cheap rather than attractive way, and the empty, sparse areas where everything fits perfectly into tiles rubs me the wrong way for a 3D game. I get that it’s faithful; I even appreciate it, but did we need a literal 1:1 re-creation of the original game’s levels? I would have been find had Nintendo let up on the rigidity and make these stages feel more like real worlds. The rigid design could be kept where it matters, such as the platforming; I’m more talking about the overall feel of the whole thing. That said, I would have been happy with a 100% faithful design if it looked a little better than what we got. I just can’t get past that weird sheen coating everything.

Gameplay-wise, I’m also disappointed, though not as sorely. The problem is it’s a lot simpler than I recalled, and without the charming visual accompaniment powered by the SNES it loses a lot of its luster. The best thing I can say about it is that the battles were actually tougher than I remembered, even some normal battles. I’m not sure if Nintendo made any tweaks or if kid me was somehow more innately attuned with the resonance of the genre, but I died a bunch of times here — though mostly to unpredictable attacks, bad luck, or neglecting to heal. I streamed most of my playthrough, and since I’ve to master the art of reading chat while paying attention to the game, I’ll bet that had something to do with it.

When it comes to the story, I’m also failing to come up with words. The characters are entertaining enough but aren’t memorable or special in a way that sticks with me in 2024. Again, much of this can be attributed to the visual style, which turns me off so much it’s hard to look past. I didn’t see any of the famous characterization this game is supposedly known for here — mostly easy jokes and breezy happenstance. All fine, but awfully barebones for an RPG. This game definitely seems more about having moment-to-moment fun rather than telling a compelling story with interesting character work. It’s very much an RPG aimed at squarely at kids, and any further analysis is beyond my interests. I might watch a YouTube video on it, though.

The music’s perfectly adequate and nothing more. Yoko Shimomoura returns for round 2, but even a genius like her can only do so much with her relatively basic original work. The tunes are mostly great, of course — it’s a beloved soundtrack, but I’m not reviewing the SNES version. Unfortunately, the compositions’ simplicity doesn’t translate as well to modern orchestration as I would have liked. The Switch version tends to sound flat and boring rather than punchy and exciting. Maybe a more retro voicing and presentation would have fit this one better. In fact, that’s what the graphics needed, too — if any game screamed for a Square Enix-esque HD-2D remaster, it was Super Mario RPG. Alas, I can only recommend what’s out there, and if you’ve never played this classic before, I would wholeheartedly recommend the Super Nintendo version, however you get your hands on it. It’s got legions of fans for a reason, and I don’t think the Switch update does it justice.

Thanks for catching up on this year’s JRPG Journey. See you next month, when we’re going back in time once again, this time for a more obscure NES title, Record of Radia War.